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Join child psychiatry expert, Professor Louise Newman, in conversation with ABC Life Matters presenter, Natasha Mitchell, and a childcare trauma specialist as they explore the impact of violence and trauma on children’s development. This Next 200 Dialogue is hosted by The Benevolent Society, the State Library of NSW and Radio National. Read full article

Maree’s husband, Allan, died earlier this year after battling brain cancer, throwing her world into turmoil and disrupting the lives of her two young daughters as they struggled to cope with the fear and devastation of losing their father, and the uncertainty this meant for their future. Read full article

Our children have always grown up with pets of some description ... Our longest survivor and most beloved pet was Loki, the Bernese Mountain Dog. Riddled with anxiety about storms, fireworks, water, feathers and tradespeople, she ruled our lives and loved us with joyous enthusiasm. It was with great sadness, (and some poignant relief because we’re about to renovate and the tradesman thing was going to be tricky) that we realised she was dying. Read full article

“I don’t like big erfquakes, They’re stupid!!” exclaims almost three year old Marco, now a veteran of two major earthquakes and living with his parents and older brother in Christchurch, New Zealand. Since September 2010 when the first major earthquake hit the ‘Garden City’ of New Zealand, Marco has labelled every run down building or scaffolding in the street as “Look at that big erfquake” and on the day prior to the February 2011 earthquake in Christchurch, his house was burgled – his first reaction “an erfquake.” Read full article

Last week was a quiet week for blogging and writing on happychild. I was distracted. My brother, his wife and their two little boys live in Christchurch New Zealand. They are fortunate and we are relieved – they are safe and their house has only minor damage. ... Since September, many people in Christchurch have continued to feel anxious and stressed and this has been compounded by the frequent aftershocks that jolt them out of temporary distraction, and remind them that they’re living with risk. Read full article

Children are often the forgotten mourners when a family experiences the death of one of its members. The language of their grief is not always easy to see or hear and is frequently misunderstood. For this reason, they may not receive the attention they need to help them learn to live with the pain of loss. This article gives practical ideas for parents and carers to help children cope with death, the funeral and grief. Read full article

Firstly, I'm a journalist, not a psychologist. I am, however, a mother and a daughter. My sons' introduction to grief, big earth-shattering loss, was also my own. On Boxing Day 2007, two days short of her 70th birthday, my mother suffered an enormous stroke and literally dropped dead. In my house. At the feet of my sons - then aged 4 & 6. Read full article